FAQ: Rules
From SSDC, Inc.
Which skill charts are the most up to date?
A: GU skill lists.
What happened to the Prestige, Alignment, and Honor charts?
A: Prestige will reappear, but the others have been annihilated.
Some reference to Prestige rules are in Condemned.
When an instant death critical hit (head removed from shoulders, spine, ...) kills a character, can they still be resurrected?
A: Only if the head, spine, etc. is re-attached quickly.
If BRI’s are used to jump start a person’s heart after death, do they still have to make a resurrection roll?
A: Yes.
What do you mean by temporary revival for BRI resurrection?
A: The character is revived, but is still in need of serious and immediate medical attention.
Is there any way to revive a character after catastrophic damage?
A: No. The only way is to have a clone, or a high level Zen and Chatilian Empath to raise dead.
The body must be reconstructed to put the soul back into.
If I roll to see where I hit my target and I roll a 72, which is a chest hit.
I do enough damage to cause 2 critical hits.
Do I take that 72 over to the critical hit chart (causing a broken collar bone), or do I roll to see what critical I have.
How do I determine the other critical hit?
Do I roll a completely new critical number from 1-100, do I roll until I get a number in the range of 55-72, or do I only cause on critical because all the damage was done with a single shot.
A: You rolled a 72, therefore you cause the critical which is listed as 72, broken collar bone.
You can’t cause multiple crits with a single area hit.
Unless you are using some weapon which hits multiple areas such as a flame-thrower.
It states in the GU, that people who are Experts and Masters in skill areas receive double (Expert) to 3-4 times (Master) the base pay rate.
Does this still hold if characters are already receiving the officer pay multiplier (X2)?
A: First of all salary is totally up to the BMs discretion, but generally an expert officer receives x3 and a master x4. After all, most officers are at least experts.
What are the modifiers for shooting based on a target’s size class?
Couldn’t find this one anywhere in the combat section (or anywhere else), but I’ve seen it referred to.
A:
[edit] WEAPON RANGE BRACKETS | ||||
| RANGE | HAND WEAPON | ANTI-TANK | VEHICLE | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 01-05 | 01-50 | 01-75 | |
| 2 | 06-15 | 51-100 | 76-200 | |
| 3 | 16-25 | 101-250 | 201-500 | |
| 4 | 26-50 | 251-500 | 501-1000 | |
| 5 | 51-150 | 501-1000 | Beyond 5000 | |
| 6 | 151-300 | 1001-1500 | ||
| 7 | 301-700 | 1501-3000 | Space x100 km | |
| 8 | 700-2000 | 3001 + | ||
|
[edit] SIGHTING CHECKS |
[edit] MOVEMENT | |||
| RANGE | BASE | TYPE | DM | OM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01-05 | 300% | Crawl | -20 | n/a |
| 06-15 | 250% | Crouched Run | -15 | -15 |
| 16-25 | 150% | High Crawl | -25 | n/a |
| 26-50 | 75% | Low crawl | -35 | n/a |
| 51-150 | 25% | Dive | -15 | n/a |
| 151-300 | 10% | Roll | -20 | -70 |
| 301-700 | 05% | Evasion | +15 | n/a |
| 701-2000 | 01% | |||
|
[edit] COMBAT MODS | ||||
| SITUATION | MODIFIER | SITUATION | MODIFIER | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stationary Target | +10 | Smoke, dust, or fog | -50 (vision, smell) | |
| Prostrate Target | +30 | Haze | -30 (vision) | |
| Speed 01-10 | +00 | Dusk or Cloudy | -50 (vision) | |
| Speed 11-20 | -10 | Starry Night or Low-Light Area | -100 (vision) | |
| Speed 21-30 | -20 | Dark Night or Lightless Area | -250 (vision) | |
| Speed 31-40 | -30 | Object Size | (vision) | |
| Speed 41-50 | -40 | Small (<40lbs and <48in) | -25 to -300 | |
| Speed 51-100 | -50 | Size Class 1 | -20 | |
| Speed 101-200 | -60 | Size Class 2 | -10 | |
| Speed 201-500 | -70 | Size Class 3 | -05 | |
| Speed 501-1000 | -80 | Size Class 4 | 00 | |
| Speed 1001-2000 | -90 | Size Class 5 | +05 | |
| Speed 2001-5000 | -100 | Size Class 6 | +10 | |
| Large (>600lbs and >95in) | +25 to +300 | Size Class 7 | +15 | |
| Wind | -10 to -50 (smell, hearing) | Size Class 8 | +20 | |
| Interference | -05 to -100 (smell, hearing) | Attacking with 2 Weapons | -40 | |
| Aimed Shot | +07 | |||
| Braced Shot | +10 | |||
| First Snap Shot | -10 | |||
| Second Snap Shot | -25 | |||
| Suppressive Fire | -20 | |||
| Cover 25% | -10 | Range Stakes | +05 | |
| Cover 50% | -25 | Called Shots: | ||
| Cover 75% | -40 | Head | -50 | |
| Cover 90% | -50 | Arm | -50 | |
| Concealment 25% | -08 | Leg | -20 | |
| Concealment 50% | -17 | Chest | -15 | |
| Concealment 75% | -25 | Abdomen | -20 | |
| Concealment 90% | -30 | Hand | -60 | |
| Foot | -60 | |||
| Throat | -75 | |||
| Eye | -90 | |||
You should use a fairly small size adjustment IMHO ... and if you have uncle Ernie’s you should also have the smaller and larger size mods.
Two-Handed Swords have a ROF of 1/4. On seconds numbering 2 and 3, does the combatant get an action to be able to parry?
In other words, in the seconds where a combatant does not have an attack, can they parry with the weapon?
A: Parrying takes an action. Therefore, no.
When attacking with two weapons, an experienced HTH fighter has his extra attacks split between the weapons.
When the weapons are something like a Long Sword and a Two-Handed Sword (a Ram Python let’s say), which have ROFs of 1/3 and 1/4, and if the attacker is 5th level in Archaic Hand Weapons: Swords, how would you do the number of attacks for the first 9 rounds or so?
A: Here are the attacks if each weapon is used singly:
2H Sword alone: 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1
Long Sword alone: 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1
Ok what is a round??? So everyone is clear, we are talking seconds. I see by your example you meant seconds.
So lets consider this example as A Ram Python using a 2H sword and a LSword, with lvl 5 skill; i.e. 1 extra attack.
Very simple problem: the person gets the extra attack on their primary hand.
So lets assume he has 2h in Primary hand.
Second 1: 2H sword (-10 to hit), LS (-25 to hit)
Second 2: None
Second 3: 2H sword (-10 to hit)
Second 4: LS (-25 to hit)
Second 5: 2H sword (-10 to hit)
Second 6: None
Second 7: 2H sword (-10 to hit), LS (-25 to hit)
OK, now let's see what’d happen if he had lvl 7 HTH; first extra on primary, 2nd extra on secondary.
I will leave off the to hit mods.
Second 1: 2H sword, LS
Second 2: None
Second 3: 2H sword, LS
Second 4: LS
Second 5: 2H sword
Second 6: LS
Second 7: 2H sword,LS
Cycle repeats... The important point to note is that extra attacks due to skill are divided amongst weapons not added to each. I’d be happy to provide more examples if people want them.
Can someone parry a missile weapon (such as an arrow, crossbow bolt, or thrown dagger)?
If so, should the parry % be reduced (by 1/2 or so)? If this is not feasible, why not?
It can be done in the real world (especially with things as slow moving as thrown knives), so why not in Battlelords?
Admittedly, few people in Battlelords would worry terribly about being killed by an arrow or thrown knife, but it should still be possible to parry such an attack.
Especially if you’re Eridani, Kizanti, Tanndai, or some other HTH monster.
A: Let us consider the difference between set-up situations and real battle situations.
Yes, we know somebody who caught an arrow. But: he knew when they were firing at him.
If someone shoots or throws at you anywhere but your front 120 degree field of vision... forget it.
No chance. An arrow fired from 100 yards, is just not going to be apparent until it hits you.
Unless you watch it fired the chance is 0. If you see it, I’d impose a -90 modifier.
-100 for a crossbow. A knife, if you see it thrown, you could stop it. At a -30 to -50 modifier.
Having 4 attacks per second with a bow is lightning fast.
Can you imagine how unrealistic it would be if the guy had (2 + 6 = 8) attacks in one second?
A: Yeah, I think you’re right about that.. at one point we came up with no extra bow attacks.
I think a better way is to take 2 extra attacks to give you one extra shot per 6!
The “+ to hit” is the main benefit. However, your mileage may vary.
Official Falling Rules.
A: Heavy armor is affected normally.
My standard rule is 1-6 points per 3m over the first 2m, concussive divided among 3 sections.
Can you hyper-train physical skills or skills with no monetary value?
A: Not physical skills, but yes for skills with no monetary level.
Here is our guess for the maximum IM modifier (for player races anyway).
Can you please tell us if our reasoning is flawed?
| Item/Skill | Attribute IM |
|---|---|
| Agility 150 | -7 |
| Alertness lvl 3 | -3 |
| Cybernetic: Increased reflexes | -4 |
| Body Equilibrium lvl 7 | -3 |
| Reflex Tablet | -2 |
| Thought activated Omega weapon | -4 |
| Total Initiative Modifier | -23 |
If I’m sitting in a Humpty with a Deep Net do I get to add another -10 for a total of -33?
A: Deep Net cannot combine with Reflex Tablet, Thought activated weapon, or cybernetic increased reflexes, as it already incorporates system equivalents.
So, you still can't get below -23.
The items listed in the description of body equilibrium are cumulative, are they not?
For example: At level 10 would you have the following modifiers?
Deaths Door +5
Initiative modifier -3
Personal skin threshold 2
Mental SMR bonus +20 etc., etc., etc.
A: Yes, they are cumulative.
What are the correct aim times?
In the Battlelords Rule book, it says “A person must spend 3 seconds aiming, plus 1 second per additional 50m of distance.”
Later in the Battlelords Rule book, it says: “1 second per 250 meters of range to aim weapons without scopes. 2 seconds per 100 meters of range to aim weapons with scopes.”
A: The +7 aiming modifier has been abolished.
In the Battlelords rule book, Snap Shots, it says that there is a -40 mod for not aiming.
Then what is the Aim +07 in the combat charts? What are the bonuses for?
Any weapon that costs 200K or less has a standard targeting system, unless otherwise stated in the description.
A: To aim this weapon takes 1 second per 50 meters.
Any weapons with a cost over 200K uses a computerized targeting system.
To aim with this weapon takes 1 second per 250 meters.
Also, combat rounds all take one second, no matter what the type of combat you are engaged in.
The references to segments in the books refer to each second (between initiative rolls) being divided into 3 segments.
When you gain an additional attack with HTH skill you are actually getting 1/3 of an attack (this is in segments).
IE: I get 1 punch per second (combat round). My level of HTH gives me +1 attack.
This means I have 4/3 attacks per second. To continue, I will get 2 attacks every third second.
What is the difference between Terrestrial Knowledge Secondary Statistic and General Knowledge Skill?
A: General Knowledge skill adds to the Terrestrial Knowledge Statistic.
What is the penalty for attacking when you are completely blind.
This has come up a number of times during play in the last 4 years.
It should be more than the -30% for smoke or -20% for darkness, come on!
(Those penalties seem a little on the light side, too).
A: Generally -60. -20 indicates nighttime darkness rather than total dark.
What are the smell, vibration sense, and hearing penalties for wearing armor?
A: -30 (-infinity if environmental contained); -75; -30
How do vision checks work now?
Personally I liked the system included in the red book, but that is gone now.
If a character is looking for something is it: IN + Perception bonus + vision bonus?
What are the modifiers and penalties?
Does it work this way for smell and hearing checks?
Isn’t adding a perception bonus to an already high IN kind of overkill?
A: The base chance for a vision check is 50 + racial modifier + sighting skill + Intuition *bonus* - situational penalties assigned by BM.
Similarly for smell and hearing. Note that base IN is not used.
BIG PROBLEM! It is impossible to sneak around in a Battlelords game.
We have NO information on the capabilities of the various detection devices (bio scanner, motion scanner).
The means to defeat these detection methods are questionable at best.
A HIC (% effectiveness unknown) will pick up everything at 500 meters away.
We have no information on bypassing a bio scanner.
If you avoid a vibro rod by flying, then you show up on RADAR!
Are there no personal versions of the HD stealth device?
Technology makes stealth, camouflage and concealment skills useless.
How does infiltration skill work against such detection devices? No techno-ninja in this campaign!
*Note: The rules for making hearing and smell checks were removed from the new Battlelords book!
Camo Unit +30/+50 (+60/+80 for spymaster); Camouflage Detector Completely negates Camo Unit.
Chance to Sneak: NONE.
They still have to make a base sighting check.
Motion Detector Effectiveness UNKNOWN (assume 100%); Motion Scrambler -80% effective.
Chance to Sneak: 20% at 50-500m.
Chance to DETECT is 20%. With IR Discriminator: 95% chance to see you.
Range: Sight IR Dampener -35% (Negated by IR Enhancer).
Chance to Sneak: 5% at 701-2000m using sight rules.
Sonic Discriminator +90% chance to detect, Range UNKNOWN; Sonic Dampener a pathetic -25%.
Chance to Sneak 55%.
Since a sonic discriminator is attached to a sonic amplifier, it has the same range.
See Lock-N-Load for Vibro Rod Effectiveness (assumed 100%).
NO DEFENSE 00 (May fly to avoid detection).
Chance to Sneak: NONE.
A: You can plant thumpers thus eliminating their ability to locate your exact position. Sometimes if the enemy is well equipped it is very hard to sneak in!
Try using some Mutzachan powers.
Can a berserk or suicidal character make called shots? What if the character is an Eridani?
A: Yes.
When a person makes a successful called shot against a general location?
How is the EXACT result determined for purposes of critical hits?
Rolling percentiles until something in the given range comes up takes far too long.
Simply rolling a d10 gives a location, but inaccurate.
In the case of an abdomen hit, that would make the “38s” as likely to be hit as the lower abdomen (39-44).
A: Using the hit location chart in the Battlelords book, count the first number in that section as one on a d20.
Roll a d20 to determine the percentage location hit.
e.g. Firing at the chest; hit; roll d20 get a 11; that’s a 65, you are slain.
Reroll high results but there shouldn’t be too many. Use a d10 for arms and head if you like.
What good is evasion if it makes you EASIER to hit?
To me “evasive maneuvers” implies dodging and weaving while running away.
Is evasion the only POSSIBLE way to escape discharge combat?
A: You may be weaving and dodging but you have basically exposed your entire body.
Your dodging cannot be directed because your back is to the attacker. This is not the same as a stealthy retreat.
Some discharge combats can be evaded without penalty, but if we are in the open and you turn and run I have a better chance to shoot you in the back than if you were facing me and could see where the gun was pointed.
Skills such as Strength, Agility, and Military Leadership raise a statistic by “x” percent.
Is this the number of added POINTS, or is the original statistic multiplied by this percentage to determine the bonus?
For instance, Military Leadership skill raises the statistic by 6%.
If my Military Leadership is 50, would one level make the new score (50+6=) 56, or (50 x 1.06=) 53?
I am unclear on this.
A: It is that number of points.
What is the mechanic skill? It is required for High Tech Weapon Design, but not listed in the basic BL book or GU.
Does this refer to the journeyman mechanic skills? If so, to which specific mechanic skill does this refer to?
Or does it refer to mechanical engineering. What about electronics? Does this refer to electric engineering?
If so how come Granny (Condemned) has 8 levels of mechanic and mechanical engineering. Which mechanic skill does she have?
A: This is basically an error. Mechanical engineering is required for HTWD; electronics is supposed to be a journeyman skill, if it is not then use electrical engineering; and Granny is a skimmer mechanic.
In GU in Deep Space Operations a skill called navigation is present.
Can we assume this is space navigation? The vehicles skill section lists both space and land navigation.
A: Yes.
The rulebook states that the max encumbrance a single tentacle can hold is 6.
Shouldn’t a Phentari with a higher strength be able to hold more in one tentacle than a Phentari with a weaker strength?
A: Technically true. However for simplicity we assumed all can hold 6; the main reason is that encumbrance reflects BULK as well as weight.
There are quite a few rifles that have encumbrance 7; these rifles are probably light enough to be held in one tentacle, but are too bulky to be manipulated by 1.
However, use the rule that suits your campaign, at BM’s discretion.
The rulebook states that anything over an encumbrance of 6 must be carried in two or more tentacles.
What determines when two tentacles isn’t enough and three (or all four) are required?
A: Two tentacles provides a much more stable support for most objects.
It is not just muscle strength involved here.
I’d suggest that 2 tentacles be allowed to handle 1/3 or 1/2 of severe enc.
3 can handle 3/4 or all of severe encumbrance.
4 tentacles can be used to lift the max lift rating.
Why does it cost 68 skill points to get first level in cybernetic repair?
The prerequisites are 2 levels of mechanical engineering, 2 levels of electrical engineering, and one level of surgery.
Engineering skills have a prerequisite of 2 levels of physics. (10 points).
Then the engineering skills themselves add up to 24 points (24+10=34).
To get surgery you need 20 points in other medical skills plus the 7 for surgery is 27 (27+34=61).
Then add the 7 points for the level of cybernetic repair (61+7=68).
I’m pretty sure this has to be a mistake, but if it isn’t I would appreciate any info I can get.
A: It isn’t a mistake. In order to understand cybernetic repair a character must first obtain a working knowledge of physics and engineering, as well as an understanding of how to interface cybernetics with the human body, which requires the person to understand medical facts very well. Consider that a level 1 cybernetics repairman is capable of removing and replacing many different components all of which are extremely complex. Now consider how many courses you would have to take in order to obtain competence in such a field (comparing to modern college).
Physics (1 year basic, 1 semester E&M, 1 semester quantum) (assumes calculus),
Electrical Engineering (1 year basic), Mechanical Engineering (1 year basic), Electronics (1 year).
Biology (1 year basic), Biochemistry (1 year basic), Organic Chemistry (1 year basic),
Human Anatomy (1 year basic), other medical courses (?), Surgery Cybernetics Interfacing (prob 1 year),
Cybernetics repair (1 semester?)
Now of course you would take some of these at the same time.
However I imagine that just getting through the program would take an average of 7 years, plus a possible
internship requirement (you are going to cut into people and put in metal!).
Basically, to be a cybernetics technician takes a lot of time and effort, and it was not intended as a starting skill.
Depends on your campaign style, your BM may decide to grant additional skills if necessary.
In Galactic Underground I couldn’t find the skill descriptions for the following:
Mental Disciplines, Shape Change, Weapons, A/R Beams, T-Bolt, Grav Tech.
A: This is found in Battlelords under Mazian shape Change.
These work as any other weapons skill (+4 per level).
The A/R Beams and T-Bolt allow the use of weapons of the same name;
Grav Tech allows use of Grav effect weapons and Gravitational Sheers.
CONSTITUTION TABLE
If you total-up all the various pieces of the body the sum is 123% instead of less than 100% as one would otherwise expect.
A: The ‘percentages’ are not actual percentages but in fact are points of CON.
Constitution can never drop below 1 even if further replacement continues.
Some characters will reach 1 CON sooner than others.
MALFUNCTIONS - BEAM WEAPONS
Roll #98 has 2 different entries.
A: Use the second result (explosion).
RANKS - MERCENARY/NAVY
Master Sergeant and Warrant Officer 1;
1st Sergeant and Warrant Officer 2 have the same primary promotion point requirements.
A: This is correct. If the person has the amount of secondary points to achieve the higher grade they are promoted.
RANKS - MERCENARY OFFICER/NAVAL OFFICER
There is a gap in the primary promotion point progression between Lieutenant Colonel/Commander and Colonel/Captain (one ends at 200 and the next starts at 251).
A: Lt. Colonel and Commander should both extend up to 250.
RANKS - SCIENCE/TECHNICAL/ESPIONAGE
Science Specialist 1, Senior Commander, and Operative Senior Grade;
Science Specialist 2, Operations Commander, and Intelligence Analyzer have same primary promotion point requirements.
A: These are all correct. It is the secondary points which matter ... if the person has them they are entitled to the higher grade.
Do Cizerack and Pythons get additional Bite and/or Tail attacks with increasing HTH skill?
If so, in what order?
A: Added HTH attacks for Pythons go: claw/claw/bite/tail/claw/claw/bite/tail
Cizerack: claw/claw/bite/claw/claw/bite/claw/claw
Phentari: tent/tent/bite/tent/tent/bite/tent/tent
For robots, what skill level, if any, is added to the UAN for their weapons?
A: It is variable by robot but most have level 5 skill (ie +20).
Does target size class affect sighting checks as it does for combat?
A: Yes.
What are the speed ranges for “moderate” and “severe” wind?
A: Moderate: 50+ kph, Severe: 100+ kph
I presume that the grenade throwing table continues to progress at -10% per 5m past 40m?
A: If a person can throw that far yes.
Is it possible to make a called shot to a specific crit? Sounds like something some Eridani would do...
A: Most specific crits are too difficult to target.
You can get approximate penalties by looking at penalties for head and eye and interpolating (ie-50 to -90 penalty).
Is initiative rolled every second or every three seconds?
A: Every second. The idea of three second rounds is basically a holdover from earlier editions of Battlelords.
The only thing that you do every three seconds is gain extra attacks from hand to hand or archaic hand weapon skill.
Note: if your ROF is slower than 1/3 with an AHW you gain extra attacks per ROF rather than per 3 secs; use whichever is slower.
In GU for the "I Was Just Growing Up Table 2" under 29-31 it says “Good at languages.
Take fluent proficiency in any three languages of your choice.”
I have a Phentari who rolled that but he doesn’t have high enough intelligence to have that many languages.
I suppose this is a BM call, but what would you suggest?
A: He should take them, he is just especially good at languages.
During a bar brawl our Ram Python tried to bite the face off of a Human.
With his three levels in HTH, and his average agility his attack number was only 12%.
50 + [skill level x 4] + Agility bonus - Defensive Modifier +/- Situational modifiers =
UAN 50 + 12 + 0 - 0 - 50 (called shot to the head) = 12.
This seemed a little low to us, are we doing it right or should we use different numbers for HTH since these are normally used for ranged fire?
A: Against a mobile target it is difficult to make every attack hit the face.
Presumably the target is dodging etc.
Do characters using machine guns have an automatic or burst fire penalty applied when shooting?
A: No.
We have a few characters, who in order to keep their other stats high, have low aggression scores.
We’re playing Battlelords of the Twenty-Third Century here so OBVIOUSLY these characters are going to be combatants.
Is there anything we can do “beef up” their aggression scores so they stop running at the first sign of danger.
The tweaks in modifiers don’t help that much (especially since you guys GOT RID OF HONOR... and it’s referred to in the table!)
Of course that’s because GU came before new Battlelords book.
Our Tza Zen came up with one interesting solution, we wired the wimpy characters autodoc to a remote control, and filled it full of Rage Injection serum.
It works, but it’s getting old for that character.
(By the way... would they’re be any, oh... say “detrimental” effects of this on that poor character.)
Basically they could take psychological counseling sessions ...
A: Treat this as similar to an Agility skill boost but you have to faithfully attend for the listed time, which can be a hindrance to you ...
and it costs the same in skill pts etc. ... Same maximum level.
Is there a penalty for firing a rifle or other large weapon while in melee?
A: No, but it will not be an aimed shot and some weapons will thus incur a -40 penalty.
BMs discretion.
If you roll initiative every second and you resolve attacks every second, why is a combat round three seconds?
A: Because hand to hand bonus attacks are given every three seconds.
Do you get your base number of attacks (Humans 2, Phentari 3, etc) every second or every round (3 seconds) spacing them out evenly?
A: You space them amongst the 3 second round evenly. Also additional attacks gained are per 3 seconds as well.
Please explain Matrix Initiative more concisely.
The explanation in the book seems a little fuzzy, especially the part about how it implies that if Fredd were to roll a 23 on initiative he would have a problem.
A: The system should be read as follows: each initiative # corresponds to .1 of a second (roughly).
So a matrix with a 1 second casting time adds 10 to your initiative.
A 2 second matrix should be treated as taking up all of 1 combat round, and then rolling on the second round and adding 10.
So Fredd really had no chance of losing to Henry, ever.
Please explain fully the time system.
In one part of the book it says that rounds are 3 seconds.
In another it says that they are 1 second. And in yet another they mention tenths of seconds.
A: 3 seconds is basically meaningless, except that in hand to hand combat you gain 1 attack per 3 seconds for extra levels of skill as displayed on the HTH chart. Any other reference to 3 second rounds is an error. 1 second is a round or segment. Initiative is expressed in .1 sec increments (roughly).
Please explain about non-proficiency in a skill, once again there are inconsistencies.
In one part of the Battlelords book, it states that there is a -40 penalty modifier to the difficulty rating.
Yet later, a contradiction occurs when you state that no SB’s are applied, and they don’t mention the -40 modifier.
Can you clear this up please?
A: The rule late in the book is incorrect.
What are the starting skill points for Phentari?
A: 40 skill pts.
Are there random hit location charts for the Phentari and Ashanti?
A: When an arm hit is rolled roll a dice for upper or lower arm on that side; equal chance of either.
How do you handle damage?
This is how I see it: Roll to see where you hit. Subtract threshold, absorption, and integrity.
But when absorption runs out where does the damage go?
Say you get hit in the arm and you roll on the crit table jaw shattered. I don’t get it.
A: Threshold is first subtracted from damage. The remaining amount is subtracted from absorption.
When this is gone damage is applied to the person. Any shot that penetrates the threshold reduces integrity.
The hit chart is a condensed form of the crit chart.
Each area on the chart has a corresponding part, with the same numbers on the crit chart.
For example 64 is a hit to the chest. If it is a crit, it blows the heart apart.
What’s the “skill” mean after every vital stat?
A: The modifier that is applied to any skill check which is based on that stat.
This is the PS column on the skill chart.
What’s the deal with heavy points? Can they be affected by normal weapons?
A: One Heavy Point is 100 Body Points. Weapons that do not do HPs of damage can still affect Heavy Point objects if the total damage inflicted is over 100 points.
Treat Heavy Points as being no different from body points except that each HP represents 100BP.
When a characters takes levels in persuasion, does his bargaining stat also improves?
A: Yes.
What is the average bargaining stat for a weapon/armor dealer?
A: 25 + racial modifier + 5 levels of skill = 45 + racial modifier.
We would like to know if there are any skills for a Goola-Goola to “invent” stuff (make new junk)?
Most related skills are too expensive in SC to be competent in many fields like a Goola-Goola would want to be.
A: No, he just describes what he does to the GM and suffers the results.
When you take levels of deep sleep, can you walk greater distances since you stay up longer?
A: Yes.
What is the maximum encumbrance you can hold with one hand?
Are there any types of weapons that must be held with two hands?
A: Unless noted in the description or blatantly obvious you can hold any weapon in 1 hand.
However you need both hands to aim rifles and most other weapons.
The maximum encumbrance in 1 hand is about half your max encumbrance, roughly.
What are the penalties for killing/eating your neighbor and/or a nice old lady after helping her across the street (prison, death, money...)?
A: It depends on the local government. You might get death on Earth or a small fine on Phena.
If two vehicles are traveling at 50 mph (side by side) and shooting at each other what is the difficulty rating?
This assumes smooth driving conditions. The reason I ask is because they are not moving away from each other at any real speed (mph) making the -2 penalty for every 10 mph of speed null and void.
This penalty only assumes a stagnate attacker firing at a moving opponent.
What are the difficulty modifiers for attacking from a moving vehicle?
A: I would assign no penalty if there is no relative speed.
Attacking from a moving vehicle is at a -2 for every 10mph of speed, in most cases.
How is it possible for anyone (regardless of a level 20 melee skill) to attack 6 times with a long sword in a single second?
This doesn’t seem to make sense, especially when you can only fire a discharge weapon such as a Beretta 9mm once per second?
We are talking about a semi auto pistol here not a heavy long sword.
The ROF for these weapons should represent something entirely the reverse of what the current rules state. Why not?
A: First off a person with lvl 20 sword skill gets +4 attacks for a total of 5 attacks.
Second, the 5 attacks are spread over 3 seconds.
We have recently entered a debate on what exactly translational damage is.
Does it skip absorption and go directly to BP or does it go from one hit location to the next if the first one is destroyed?
A: Traditional damage is first reduced by Threshold, then taken off Absorption.
Any remaining damage comes off Body Points.
You cannot take more than 50% of your total Body Points from being hit in an arm//leg/etc.
This indicates it has taken catastrophic damage and is off.
Damage is not transferred to another section like in Battletech.
‘Translational damage’ actually refers to concussive or Omega attacks, or other crushing blows.
It IGNORES threshold and reduces directly off absorption. If no absorption remains, sbtract from BPs.
Damage does not flow between sections, in most cases.
How can you get rid of black marks? They seem to be a lot like the Army's General Counseling Forms.
Once you manage to get the next promotion, do the black marks vanish?
A: You can never get rid of black marks. You must overcome them by gaining more promotion points.
If a starting character has enough skills, does he start at a higher rank?
A: He sure does.
For rank, do you count the levels the player has and multiply by the normal Skill Cost of the skill, or by the Skill Cost the player had to pay?
A: You multiply by the listed skill cost of the skill, not by the amount the player had to pay.
What is the penalty for a third and fourth weapon used by a Phentari or Ashanti?
A: A third weapon is -10, and a fourth weapon -25.
Will we see modified hit location tables for prone positions?
Does the firer simply roll until a location within a certain range comes up?
If so, what is this range - chest, arms, and head, or what?
A: You have to base it on the situation but the best way is to roll until you get a reasonable result.
I rolled 26 on the Tanndai "I was just growing up" table, which gives me Electronics 3 and Cybernetic Repair 2. There are several prerequisites to Cybernetic Repair skill. Do I get these prerequisite skills also?
A: No. You only get Electronics 3 and Cybernetic Repair 2, you do not get the prerequisite skills.
This applies to any skills gained from rolling on IWJGU or FFoF tables.
At the BM's descretion, he may force you to get the prerequisite skills before you are awarded the "free" skills.
NOTE TO PLAYERS: We like the Experience point system in GUII.
We find that it gives more XP sooner and then tapers off at higher levels.
The way we played the old XP system was the exact opposite.
It took forever to advance at low levels, but increased rapidly as players progressed to higher levels.
How does having multiple HTH skills effect how extra attacks are spread? IE: I have a Phentari with 10 levels in Ptfaang for an additional +2 attacks, he also has 10 levels of Modern Hand Weapon Plasma Whip for an additional +2 attacks. Does this mean that the Ptfaang would get +2 and the Plasma Whip would get +2? This would make the Ptfaang hit once per second and the plasma whip hit twice the first second and then once the second second? Or do you add together for +4 total attacks or does it just get +2 attacks. How does this come into play when wielding a second Plasma whip too?
I keep seeing the statement that a -23 is the lowest initiative that can be achieved. However the Patience matrix can be generated on anyone the Empath can touch for an additional -2. This would make the new low -25... and furthermore the Psychic Targeting matrix could be employed on someone as well for an additional -2 for a -27. While it is unlikely that someone possessing all the other modifiers would be an empath it is not impossible. So is -27 the new low or am I missing something?
